Page 158 of Bonded Chaos

“So, you intend to bring me to trial,” I said, ashamed of the way my bottom lip trembled.

Ryker chuckled without mirth. The sound made me recoil, and I felt an overwhelming urge to flee, to hide where he could never find me.

“Oh, sweet Cadence,” he murmured, his voice a dark caress. “I couldn’t care less if you slaughtered every fucking being in the Unseelie Palace and then bathed in their blood.”

The coldness of his stare sent my heart racing, and I retreated a step before I could stop myself.

“I’m not angry that you’re one of the Wraith Borne, Cadence. I am fucking enraged that you thought you could leave me.”

His calm demeanor was even more terrifying than any act of violence I’d ever witnessed.

“Not only that, but you conspired to have me believe you were dead.”

Ryker reclaimed the step between us as he leaned into my space. His lips brushed against the shell of my ear, and his warm breath tickled my neck.

“How. Fucking. Dare. You.”

Ryker pushed his hand into my hair and gripped my nape with a bruising force.

“You are never going to be free of me, Cadence, and your new accessories will ensure you can’t use your magic to escape me,” he said as his free hand slid over the cuffs. “Youwillsit beside me when I take the throne, or so help me, Cadence, I’ll hunt down every single person you love and remove them from this world.”

“Brother,” Riordan murmured, the shock audible in his tone.

“Stay the fuck out of this, Riordan,” Ryker snarled, never taking his eyes off me.

Inhaling deeply, I allowed all the pain and sorrow I had experienced in my life to flow through me. I drowned in it. Rejoiced in the suffering because once it had subsided, I would be reborn.

Then I exhaled a measured breath and narrowed my gaze at Ryker.

“With the gods as my witness, Ryker, you will rue the day you walked into my life. I am going to destroy you. I will take back everything you’ve stolen from me, and then I’m going to burn your world down around you.”

A ghost of a smirk curved Ryker’s mouth as he extinguished the remaining space between us.

“Anything for you, Temptress. If you want to burn my world down, I’ll hand you the fucking match.”

Ryker pressed his lips against mine, sealing his vow with a kiss. His tongue invaded my mouth, and I bit down, tasting blood. That didn’t stop him, though. He kissed me as if I was the very air he needed to breathe.

His hands gripped my waist with a possessiveness that was both infuriating and intoxicating. I wanted to pull away, to resist, but once again, my body betrayed me.

His kiss softened, his aggression giving way to something deeper, something that felt like desperation.

When he broke the kiss, he reached between us and clasped my hand in his. His free hand drifted up to swipe at the blood staining his lips, and when he peered down at the crimson substance smeared across his thumb, he rumbled in approval.

Without another word, he turned in the direction of the Unseelie Kingdom.

“Come, Cadence, we’re going home.”

His kingdom would never be my home, and he’d realize that soon enough.

Chapter Sixty-Four

Callum

Months prior…

There had been no sign of Cadence in weeks, and despite my best efforts, my search had been futile. I couldn’t find her, and I was running out of places to look.

Her apartment above the apothecary remained locked and undisturbed, but my gut feeling told me I was missing something.

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